Reading, listening to, and questioning America... from the southern Great Plains

Are the government and corporations moving away from each other?

Even as the Obama administration appears to be putting down an unnavigable slick between itself and BP, corporate executives are doing what they can to hide their financial ties to politicians.

Who's the latest member of the Obama administration to trek to southern Louisiana? The law. The Washington Post reports that Attorney General Eric Holder is on his way.

The Holder trip could signal that the environmental calamity might become the subject of a criminal investigation.

Holder has said Justice Department lawyers are examining whether there was any "malfeasance" related to the leaking oil well, and investigators, who have already been on the coast for a month, have sent letters to BP instructing the company to preserve internal records related to the spill. But federal officials indicated that Holder's trip, which will include a news conference in New Orleans on Tuesday afternoon, will focus on enforcement of environmental laws and holding BP accountable.

Meanwhile, even as many corporations appear to be delighted by the Supreme Court decision giving them more control over the people's elections, they're doing what they can to appear detached.

They're aware of the anger over the bailout. They'll still be pouring money into the political process; they just want their names left out.

Many corporate executives don't want to wade into partisan political campaigns. But other companies have told their advisers and GOP fundraisers that they are interested in helping finance ads to spotlight proposed regulations and lawmakers they don't like. These companies include firms on Wall Street and in the energy sector opposed to stricter regulations as well as fast-food franchise owners fearful of being forced to unionize their shops ...

... Some fear the rules on corporate election activities could change, leaving their company exposed; a White House-supported bill likely to be voted on by the House after the Memorial Day recess would require calling out by name the corporations that fund campaign ads. ...WaPo